Bob McArthur turns on his radio and puts out a “CQ” call – calling anyone, anywhere for a chat.
Answering the call, somewhat tinny until McArthur makes a few adjustmentsm to make the signal clearer and clearer, is Ian, of central England. The two exchange some details – their exact locations, the kinds of radios they have and how clear their signal is, before signing off.
It’s a pretty typical conversation between
ham radio operators. The fact that they’re across an ocean from each other is no object.
McArthur, whose radio set up is in an upstairs office in his New Ipswich home, with an antenna set up in his backyard, has been a ham radio enthusiast for the past 25 years.
One of his favorite things about the hobby is seeking out hams in far-reaching places. Often, even those in foreign countries speak at least a little English because of the popularity of the hobby in English-speaking countries. The United States has by far the most amateur radio operators, at 779,545 licensed operators.
One of his favorite summer activities is taking a
long-range and handheld radio to the top of Pack Monadnock in Peterborough, along with a five-foot antenna, and using the height of the mountain and
local repeater to reach other operators.
McArthur, in his long career as a ham operator, has collected the countries he has contacted in several ways. He has a log book, where he collects contacts made from countries for the first time, and exactly how far away the operators were from his location. His current record-holder is an operator from Saipan, 12,481 miles from New Ipswich. His log book has recorded contact between 228 countries over the many years he has been doing the hobby.
Community is a big part of the hobby, McArthur said. There are annual “field days” where radio operators operate for the full 24 hours and try to make as many unique connections to other operators as possible. This year’s field day is June 24 into June 25.